Chapter Fifty-Four: The Scheming Little Demon Mosquito

“Friend, the Twin Heroes of Cang Mountain have only one true passion: we are utterly devoted to beautiful female cultivators. Would you be willing to let this young lady accompany us brothers? Of course, we wouldn’t let you suffer any loss—her magical artifacts and storage pouch are yours to keep, and we’ll add fifty spirit stones as compensation. What do you say?”

The mark’s binding vanished, and Xiao Wenzi, who had just lost his soul connection with Chu Xin’er, was moved as well. He hadn’t yet left the girl’s palm when Zhou Kai’s raspy laughter echoed from outside, making him halt and focus, suppressing any hint of demonic aura.

“Agreed,” Huang Yipeng replied, keeping his words brief. He feared that even if he disguised his voice, the ever-perceptive Chu Xin’er might recognize something was amiss. He reached out and deftly removed the storage pouch and spirit beast bag from the girl’s waist, then took the bag of spirit stones Zhou Kai handed him, as well as the sword lying on the ground, and transformed into a streak of light, vanishing into the sky.

Their performance was hardly subtle, but it mattered little; Chu Xin’er’s cultivation was sealed, and the real drama—hero saving the beauty—was about to begin.

Xiao Wenzi, unaware of the scheme, could see that the strongest of the group had willingly departed, which was clearly to his advantage. Still, he dared not make a move, lest he startle the others and bring their leader back. When Zhou Kai produced a large sack and stuffed Chu Xin’er inside, Xiao Wenzi remained motionless.

Soon, the wind howled outside the bag. Though he did not extend his demon senses, Xiao Wenzi understood that he and the doll-faced Chu Xin’er were being carried through the air by their captors, though their destination remained unknown.

It hardly mattered. The villains had just declared their intentions toward Chu Xin’er; when they let down their guard, he could strike, inflicting heavy injuries or even death upon them both.

“Big brother, there’s a hidden cave ahead. Why don’t we enjoy this little beauty there?” one of the men suggested impatiently.

“Good idea. I can hardly wait. By the way, little brother, you still have that aphrodisiac from last time, don’t you? When we get there, give it to her to save us the trouble…”

Time blurred; after an uncertain interval, the impatient voices sounded from outside the sack, accompanied by another gravelly assent.

Upon hearing this, Chu Xin’er, who had been desperately struggling against the internal seal with no success, turned deathly pale. She could not move, but her senses remained keen. What these men intended was all too clear.

Damn it, two filthy villains! Xiao Wenzi cursed silently, slipping from the girl's palm and crawling along her back toward her head.

Yes, crawling—since the girl was being carried in a sack with only tiny openings, flight was impossible.

The sack was not some indestructible magical artifact; with his Wing Blade Art, Xiao Wenzi could easily slice it open. But he dared not try. In a direct fight, he knew he stood no chance, and Chu Xin’er was immobilized—if she fell from the sky, she might die from the impact.

Chu Xin’er’s kindness was evident; in the crucial moment, she had not sacrificed him as cannon fodder. Xiao Wenzi had no reason to abandon her now.

So, to avoid suspicion, he refrained from using a single trace of demon power. He resolved to reach the mouth of the bag and ambush the villains when they opened it, determined to prevent them from forcing the aphrodisiac on Chu Xin’er.

A cultivator at the eleventh stage of Qi Refining could only probe so far with spiritual sense; since they’d been detected, the cave could not be far. As Xiao Wenzi followed the girl’s delicate scent, climbing over her soft skin and reaching her crown, footsteps sounded outside—clearly, the two had withdrawn their flight and were entering the cave.

“Little beauty, here comes big brother!”

Zhou Kai and Wang Tao, following Huang Yipeng’s orders and playing their parts, put on lascivious airs but did not dare take advantage.

After setting down the sack, they circled around her, their laughter lewd, more verbal than physical.

But as the mouth of the sack opened and Chu Xin’er’s masked face appeared, a slightly larger mosquito flew straight from behind her head, wings slicing toward their eyes.

Swish, swish, swish—

Now at the fourth stage of the Heavenly Layers, Xiao Wenzi’s Wing Blade Art was far more potent. Most crucially, he could sweep his wings repeatedly, launching arcs of razor-sharp energy.

Zhou Kai and Wang Tao were much too close, and never imagined an ambush—after all, Huang Yipeng had taken Chu Xin’er’s spirit beast pouch. How could she have a cunning little demon mosquito at her side?

Xiao Wenzi was ruthless, knowing both men wore masks; attacking elsewhere might not cause serious injury, so he targeted their most vulnerable, exposed feature—the eyes.

Screams erupted in quick succession. With less than half a meter between them, neither Zhou Kai, holding the sack, nor Wang Tao, clutching a porcelain bottle to force-feed Chu Xin’er, escaped the wing blade’s surprise assault.

Of course, as cultivators, both men tried to dodge, but the blades aimed at their eyes were not wholly avoided; their faces were punctured with varying degrees of bloody wounds.

Zhou Kai narrowly avoided his left eye, but his right was pierced, blood gushing as agony forced him to abandon Chu Xin’er and stagger backward.

Wang Tao’s luck failed him with his left eye; another blade grazed his hair, dozens of strands fluttering to the ground, and the jade bottle shattered at his feet.

Hiss, hiss, hiss—

The eyes are windows to the soul, but also the most vulnerable route to the brain. The wing blade’s force not only destroyed their eyeballs, but its aftershock blasted through to their spiritual sea.

Wracked with pain, the two men clutched their ruined eyes and retreated, exposing their chests.

Xiao Wenzi gave them no respite—his wings swept again and again, launching blades at their chests and throats.

Blood sprayed. Wang Tao, still weakened from wounds inflicted by an ice spike talisman, was a step too slow—his throat was pierced and he collapsed backward, not dead but at his last gasp.

Zhou Kai desperately summoned his protective aura, but his mind was injured; before the wing blades could shatter his shield, he lost the strength to maintain it.

“This—”

Chu Xin’er witnessed everything, unable to utter a word, but her delicate face was alight with irrepressible joy.

Moments before, she’d been annoyed and confused as Xiao Wenzi crawled along her back and neck, but now she understood—his actions were all to save her.

The servant contract had been dissolved, yet Xiao Wenzi still risked himself for her. Chu Xin’er’s gratitude was beyond words.